Nightmares
by ThisPerson1
Summary: Maybe he should just get over it. He can't. Maybe he should be worrying over other, more important matters. He isn't. Maybe he should have just forgotten about the whole ordeal. He didn't. Maybe he should be thankful, because he is still alive. He's not. Maybe these horrid nightmares and gruesome images would go away on their own. They won't stop coming. Pre-series. Mild swearing.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first Blood Lad story and I'm still reading the series. (Just started actually) Anyways, forgive me if anything is wrong, if it just doesn't make sense or if the characters seem a bit off. This just popped into my mind and I figured I'd write it because 1-I like the idea and 2-there needs to be more stories for this series. Hope you enjoy. BTW I don't own.  
**

* * *

The sky outside Staz's apartment was gloomy, just like always. The boss himself was just getting up, just like always. And, just like always, Dek was already on his way to go see him. Staz wasn't feeling very refreshed from a good night's sleep, which normally would have been uncommon, but recently it's been a problem. He's been having some pretty messed up dreams, and they're really starting to take their toll. His hair was matted and wet from sweat, as was his face, his clothes were damp and clung to him, and he looked absolutely terrible. The dark circles under his eyes now had bags to accompany them and his attention span has recently dropped to negative infinity.

He shook his head to try and clear out the last of the gruesome images before standing and fixing his hair. He could hear Dek coming down the hall and panicked. _"Oh shit." _He hastily tried to make himself pass as presentable and had just finished when the door opened.

"Mornin', boss. I didn't think you'd even be up yet."

"Yeah, well, y'know. I figured I'd get a head start on the day." He leaned against the wall in an attempt to look casual.

"Uh, alright then. But it's not like you have all that much to do. 'Sides, you don't get up early anyway." Dek looked a bit suspicious when Staz's only reply was a nervous chuckle matched with an equally nervous grin. "You alright there, boss?"

_"Crap. He's on to me. What am I supposed to do, tell him? No, that's stupid. Uh, maybe I can get him to leave. But how am I supposed to do THAT without seeming even more suspicious? Okay, okay, just play it cool and pretend there's nothing wrong even though he's looking at you like you're nuts." _By this point Staz was looking even more like a wreck.

Dek's face read confused all over. "Uh... You sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine." Dek blinked. "You know what? I'm gonna get some breakfast." Before he could be asked anymore questions, Staz walked right past Dek and headed straight to the elevator, not even giving him time to catch up. Once the doors closed he sighed. "Damn. This is getting harder and harder to hide. I have got to figure out how to do something about these nightmares." He rubbed his temples in frustration. He couldn't keep going on like this, plagued by bad memories of his childhood and the obvious reasons behind them. But who was he supposed to turn to? Dek would've been his first choice but... no. Just no. He couldn't talk to him. Maybe Saty and Mame could tell him what to do. Er... maybe not. Staz really only relied on the two for free food and occasional advice on petty things, which was usually met with a pissed Mame shouting: "Dammit, Staz! We're not gonna use our powers for that!" and throwing beans at him while Saty watched from over the day's paper. Wolf? Staz would've laughed if he had had the energy. The doors opened and he made his way out of the building and to the cafe he always visited.

"Let me guess. The usual?" Mame asked as soon as he saw it was Staz. "Honestly, I don't know why I always expect some _real _customers. It's always just you," he said as he poured his drink. Staz didn't respond but glared at his glass. Mame noticed this and waved a hand in front of his face. "Earth to Staz. You home?"

He blinked. "...Yeah."

"You're lookin' a little rough. You get in a bad fight or... something...?" The small animal stopped once Staz aimed his gaze towards him. He may have looked exhausted, but that look in his eyes just screamed at him to shut up. Or else. He lifted his paws in a show of peace before bounding down the counter away from him. Saty gave him is food which he proceeded to stab rather violently with the fork when he began cutting it.

"Did I... say something wrong?" Mame asked Saty when she sat down by him. She simply glanced at the apparently pissed vampire before looking back at him.

As for Staz, he wasn't really angry. Not at Mame, anyway. It was just the way he said things. 'It's always just you' had set him off because those horrendous events from his latest nightmare hadn't quite gone away yet. Of course, none of them ever did. This time had been a bit different, however. It wasn't just his sadistic brother's attempts at killing him, but the fact that those attempts actually succeeded. Not literally, of course, or he wouldn't be around to have those nightmares. It was something along the lines of killing from the inside. Was this getting a little carried away? Probably. That didn't mean it wasn't possible though. Maybe once he saw that all those other attempts had failed, Braz would do something that he knew wouldn't. These nightmares were eating him up inside and he really couldn't take much more. He's been swinging at air, literally swinging his arms around and kicking when he was alone, hitting nothing but really wanting to hit _something. _Or someone. But when there's someone you know that wants you dead and you have no way to take out your anger for that on them what else are you supposed to do?

Staz took in a deep breath before releasing it from his nose and eating the piece of meat he had cut once he realized he had been daydreaming. Again. He couldn't seem to stop thinking about it though. It actually made sense. Twisted, bizarre, something-his-brother-might-totally-do sense. His last nightmare especially supported that theory. He shuddered and then began scarfing down his food because he remembered just how hungry he was. However, not even hunger could get his brother off his mind. "Stupid jackass," could be faintly heard at the other end of the bar.

"He better not be talkin' about me," Mame whispered. Suddenly the bell rang and Dek entered.

"Hey, can I get a drink?"

"Yeah, sure," Mame replied, thankful for someone to make the atmosphere less uncomfortable. As he was doing that, Dek took a seat next to Staz.

"You musta been hungry, eating like that." Staz simply nodded as he shoved the last bit of food into his mouth. "Since when are you so quiet, boss?"

"..." He was going to answer but nothing really came to mind. It's not like he could just start babbling about his problems. Especially not with Mame sitting right across from him, looking at him with concern but what he saw as annoying. Besides, he couldn't show weakness. He was a territory boss. Demon World East was his, and how could he defend it if he was in a cafe crying to his 'underlings' about his personal problems?

"So about those figures you wanted me to get..." Dek decided to change the subject since he clearly wasn't going to get an answer. "I'm havin' some trouble with that. They're, uh, kinda hard to find." Normally Staz would've went off on some rant about how valuable they were and how he had to find them like, yesterday-and he was seriously considering doing that-but he just wasn't feeling it today. One thing at a time, and while Japanese anything would've topped the list under any other circumstances he knew that these nightmares had to be settled first. Only then could he focus all his efforts on getting those ultra rare figures.

"So look harder," was his response. Dek didn't seem too surprised by that. It was a typical Staz-thing to say when it came to finding those things. It was just so... unenthusiastic. As if he didn't care. And Staz not caring about Human World stuff was like the world was ending. "Listen, Dek," he said as he stood up, "just keep looking. And try to get them some time while I'm still alive. I have to go and..." _"And what? Sulk?" _"...check for some other stuff I wanted." He left the cafe only barely hearing Dek's 'Sure thing, boss' before the door shut. Feeling too tired to go and walk the streets-which he hardly did anyway-he headed back to his apartment building.

"What in the world is going on? Is this some kinda bad joke? Is the world ending? Dek, you'd better start talking." Mame was currently sitting in front of Dek, small arms crossed, waiting for an answer.

"I don't know, no, and I don't think so," he said as he took a sip from his glass. "He's been like this for a while now. Something's gotta be bugging him but I'm not sure what. He won't tell anyone."

"*Sigh* What kind of boss is he? Acting like that is so unprofessional." He rolled onto his side.

"Well, you know the boss. He'll figure something out sooner or later. Always does."

Meanwhile, Staz had stepped back inside the elevator but hadn't pressed the button to take him to his floor. 'It's always just you' was still echoing in his mind but with a different voice. One he never wanted to hear again if he could help it.

* * *

_Flashback_

_"Don't worry, Staz. This time it's sure to work." His brother was standing over him, light reflecting off his glasses like it often was, with an unnervingly large needle in his hand._

"Is he trying to make this hurt worse than it will?" _Staz thought as he squirmed in the chair he was currently tied to. "Uh... B-brother..." He didn't have time to say anything else because the needle stuck him in the arm and he let out a small yelp of pain. The pain from the injection subsided quickly and was replaced with a far worse burning feeling that began to spread. Staz managed not to scream but did begin to cringe. It felt like underneath his skin was on fire._

_"Don't worry. Once that's over you'll feel better than ever." Braz gave his little brother a pat on the head before walking away. Staz wanted nothing more than to shout at him to make it stop, yell that it hurt too much, but he would never be able to get his brother to listen._

* * *

That memory and many others were the basis of his nightmares. But some of those nightmares made his memories look like a perfect dreamland. Why did they have to be so much worse? He could understand if they were just rehashes of past events but they weren't. His most recent one...

He shuddered again. Now that he was back to reality he pressed the button that would take him to the top floor. As the elevator began moving he thought back to it even though he's been trying not to all day.

#####################################################################################################

He was strapped to a table with his brother's newest 'mad scientist creation' above him. He wasn't really certain how he had gotten there; he couldn't even remember waking up. But he was here, with that death trap hanging above him-he had no idea when or how it was built-and his brother off to the side giving him his usual spiel about how this wouldn't fail and how he would be so much happier once this was done. But something just seemed off. The room seemed a bit distorted, but that wasn't it. Braz maybe? No, he seemed to be the same for the most part. Although... there was _something _off about him, he just couldn't figure it out. Not like he could crane his head to look at him and see if he could figure it though, being strapped to a table and all. Finally he came to himself and realized that he was what seemed so different. Why was he so much older? He was only eight the other day. "Brother, did you do something to my age?"

Braz stopped talking and looked over at him. "Ha ha! What would make you think that?" He strode over to the table and Staz was able to see him in his peripheral.

"I'm older," he replied. He saw his older brother push his glasses up before slyly smiling.

"No, you're not. You're the same that you've always been." Staz didn't believe him. He didn't like that smile either.

"Can you just let me go?" He struggled against the restraints but to no avail. He never wanted to get away from his brother more than now. Something definitely wasn't right.

"Staz. How many times do I have to tell you that I'm doing you a kindness? This will help you, trust me." He disappeared from view and suddenly the machine above him began to whirr to life and lower towards him. Staz couldn't escape no matter how hard he tried. His brother was finally going to kill him and in the most deranged way possible. And for what? What had he done?

"Brother..." He wasn't able to finish because four mechanical arms had simultaneously injected him with something that effin' stung. It burned him up on the inside. He screamed in pain. It was unbearable. And then it was over. Within the span of a few moments. His heart was beating rapidly and he was shivering. Somewhere in the background he could hear Braz curse.

"Dammit! It should have worked. But it's just you, it's always just you." That was the difference. He was sick of Staz and his failures. Any other time he simply wanted to try again, but this time he was done. "That's it. No more. You should be happy now, Staz. Now that you won't have to live like this." His peculiar tone chilled Staz to the bone.

"What are you saying?" He wasn't sure why he was asking. He wasn't even sure why the initial disappointment had upset him. He should be glad that Braz won't be experimenting on him anymore. But something about the way he said it... just unnerved him. The machine above reactivated but it was different this time. It came down upon him in a much more violent manner. This time it wasn't going to be injections.

#####################################################################################################

Staz shuddered again as he made his way to his room and shut the door. Everything was still fresh in his mind. Even how real it had felt. _That _freaked him out more than anything. Being torn apart piece by piece like that. He could almost smell his own blood and wanted to hurl. Wasn't that ironic given his heritage? The images and sounds would not leave him, and he knew they probably never would. All he could do right now is lay down and try to get some sleep. And, of course, hope he wouldn't have anymore nightmares like that for a while.

* * *

**A/N:Well please review and tell me what you think. I like it, but I'm not sure if it's that good. Also, feel free to correct me on anything if I'm wrong.  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ok, so here's another chapter. I wasn't certain at first if I was going to continue this but I do like writing it and people seem to like it too, so why not? Just don't expect too many quick updates. I'll do my best but I can't make any promises. I also don't have an idea of how long it will be. It might be long, maybe short. I don't know, I'll just go with it. Anyway, enjoy. **

* * *

_**Bang!**_

*_Cough* *Cough* **Thud**_

He collapsed face first on the floor feeling surprisingly numb. His vision slowly faded to black, the last true color he saw being the redness of his own blood. Somewhere above him, he heard-or at least liked to think he did-a very, very faint "I'm so sorry, little brother," before he fully fell into darkness.

* * *

"*Gasp!* Fu-" Staz instantly shot up in his bed panting and hearing nothing but his rapid heartbeat. He caught his breath and looked around. Still in his apartment, on his bed, with no blood and, most importantly, still alive. He wiped the sweat off his forehead before sighing in annoyance. "So much for no nightmares," he grumbled. How was he going to handle this again? Oh yeah, he didn't have a plan to handle it. He was still in the process of figuring that out when he decided he needed a nap to try and make up for the loss of sleep. So much for that idea.

"That's it! I can't take much more of this." He got up and went to the window. "I need something to get my mind off these screwed up nightmares," he mumbled to himself. He spent a few minutes just watching the bustle below him before getting an idea. "Duh! I'm just stressing over it. And what better way to relieve stress than to punch the crap out of something, or someone. I'll just go pick a couple of fights. After all, who'd turn down a chance to win some turf and respect?" Grinning at his own plan he opened the window and jumped, enjoying the wind rushing past him before not-so-lightly landing on the sidewalk and startling several passer-by. He broke a few bones but due to his wounds healing instantly he hardly ever noticed anymore. Staz walked up to the nearest person, a blue-skinned demon with yellow eyes and long, thin limbs, and, grinning a bit too tightly for the poor guy's liking, slung an arm around his shoulder. "Hey, I know you, uh, Ryan right?"

"U-um... My name's Shaun." Shaun nervously folded his long arms against himself, slightly disturbed by the mischievous glint in the territory boss's eyes.

"Right, right. Well, Shaun, how'd you like to do me a little favor? If you help, you'll make it on my favorite citizen list." Shaun, highly skeptical of this 'favorite citizen list'-and even more so that Staz would ever bother to make such a thing-decided it would be best not to refuse. While he knew he was in no real danger, that eerie glint still remained in Staz's eyes and he was smiling far too widely. That, along with his disheveled appearance, was more than enough to make the lesser demon comply. "That's great! Here's what I need you to do. Just go around and tell people that I'm fully prepared to take on anyone in a fight."

"S-so you're challenging them?"

"Yeah! Tell 'em that if they're interested then they should head to East Square." Before Shaun could even get an answer for his odd behavior, Staz darted off in the direction of his makeshift battlefield.

"Well alright then." He stood there debating the best way to go about this. Should he make signs? No, that would be stupid and too time consuming. Staz obviously wanted this done now. So he did the only other thing he could think of. "Boss Staz has opened a challenge in the square! Winner take all!"

"Or lose everything, in most challengers' cases," muttered one of the bystanders who knew better than to go against Staz.

"Who'd be stupid enough to fight him head on anyway? He's deadly enough when he's _not_ trying." As if on cue, an entire mob of demons ran by screaming, yelling, and swinging around every possible weapon, one even charging with a lamp.

"Fools." The duo simply shook their heads at the stupidity of it all.

Still sitting in Café Third Eye, something suddenly seemed amiss to Dek. "Do you hear something?" He turned his head towards the door.

"Yeah." Mame bounded over next to Dek. "It sounds like yelling." Saty only glanced up from the glass she was cleaning. The yelling stopped soon after and they were meant again with silence.

"That was weird. I'm gonna go check it out."

"I'll go with you." Dek stood from his spot at the bar and once Mame was perched on his shoulder he walked outside. At first, everything was quiet. It almost seemed like a ghost town. Once they headed further into the city, however, things got much livelier. There was a massive crowd filling the East Square and the vast majority of them were chanting Staz's name. The few left who weren't were shouting things like "Waste him!", "Kill him dead!", and "I hate this guy!".

"What's going on here, Dek?! Don't tell me this is Staz's doing!" The small creature stood atop Dek's head to try and get a better view. He couldn't see very much other than a few small explosions and dust flying but he eventually caught sight of messy black hair and knew instantly whose head it belonged to. "Oh no, it is him."

"Let's get a closer look." Dek had no clue why Staz would want to do something like this. While the vampire had no problem wasting opponents, it was usually said opponent who thought it might be a good idea to pick a fight. But _Staz? _It was just unheard of that the lazy territory boss would be the one to challenge people. The situation usually went like this: a challenger shows up, screaming for Staz. Staz is likely to be playing a video game or reading manga or some other thing that he puts above his priorities. Then some people get hurt because he didn't come right away. After that, Dek calls him and tells him the problem. Once Staz is convinced that the situation is actually more important and that he needs to get there immediately, he shows up, ZIPs the dude-unless, of course, he's been watching/reading Dragon Ball again, in which case he'll try some other move-and then life as everyone knows it goes on. End of story. That is, until the cycle starts over again.

Standing here now and watching the uncharacteristically hyper Staz made Dek want to punch himself just to make sure he wasn't asleep or somehow drugged from one of Mame's drinks or something. The man that had quite literally sent himself to his doom-a more human-like demon wearing too much black leather and chains-had nearly had it. It looked as if he would topple over any second. Staz, on the other hand, never looked more alive. "Well, well." He grinned. "Looks like it's time for me to finish this. I'd ZIP you, but I already did that to the other three. I'm gonna go for something more original this time around." He got into a starting position similar to someone who'd be preparing to take a penalty kick and charged without warning. His opponent didn't even have the chance to move before Staz's fist put a hole straight through his chest. Needless to say, he fell over and that was that. Everyone cheered. "That wasn't really what I meant to do..." He had been planning on punching him back while at the same time making him spin, but had obviously put too much force in.

"Hey, boss..." Dek and Mame were at a complete loss for words. Staz turned to them with a surprised expression. He hadn't really thought of a way to explain this.

* * *

"Hmph." Braz leaned back in his chair as he watched his younger brother fight off enemy after enemy. It had surprised him a bit to find him doing something other than reading manga or playing video games. What surprised him more though-and it had never really stopped surprising him-was how Staz didn't seem to care in the slightest about his sealed powers. He should be more than capable of handling his unrestrained magic now and yet here was, using the smallest percent possible. If Braz had been in that position, he would stop at nothing to unlock his full potential. Sure, Staz had always been the lazy and careless one in the family, but still. It was baffling how this didn't upset him.

"Brother?" Liz peeked in the room to find Braz watching their brother through the large mail order crystal ball he had gotten a little while ago.

"Yes? What is it, Liz?" he asked without turning.

"U-um... You said you'd take me to the city today..."

"Ah, yes. Sorry, Liz, but I can't." Liz wasn't wearing one of her masks so the disappointment was visible. Fortunately for her, Braz's back was to her. "I'll have to take you some other time, okay, Liz?"

_"I've got work to do, I'll make it up to you. I can't, Liz. I'm far too busy. Not now, Liz. I'm about to make a breakthrough..." _Braz probably made some excuse as to why he couldn't take her, but she was too caught up in all the past ones he had made to hear. This newest one was probably just a repeat of another, really.

"Liz? Did you hear me?"

"Huh?" She jerked her head up to find him looking at her. She tried to wipe away the tears she didn't know she was shedding but to no avail.

"Why are you crying? I said I was sorry, didn't I? I'll take you another time, I promise." He seemed more annoyed than he did concerned, as if she was being ridiculous for feeling upset. That only made her more frustrated.

"I'M NOT CRYING! AND YOU PROMISED ME LAST TIME!**" **Not giving him time to respond, she darted out the room and to her own. Braz only sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Truth be told, he really didn't like treating Liz so coldly. However, he did have more important things to concern himself with than constant shopping sprees for random masks. He'd rather her just get them through mail order, that way he wouldn't have to go beyond the front door. She refuses, though, because she likes to check them out and try them on and whatnot. Well, it wouldn't matter for much longer anyway. After all, he was getting everything in order rather smoothly. Pushing his glasses back up he continued to watch as Staz stared dumbfounded at his two friends.

* * *

**A/N: It took a little while but it's done now. I'll see if I can get the next chapter a bit sooner but don't get your hopes up. Hope you liked it!**


	3. Chapter 3

"What in the world are you doing?!" Mamejirou was standing atop Dek's head, fur fluffed and tail straight, looking like a deer caught in headlights. Staz was standing before the two of them and was clearly putting all his brain power into creating a viable excuse. After a few moments he gave up and offered them a lopsided grin.

"What's it look like, Dumb-jirou?" He gestured to the heap of his beaten foes. The crowd had stopped its rambling when Mame first shouted but resumed cheering for the vampire as soon he acknowledged his enemies. Or what was left of them. "I had some turf wars. There's no need to freak out over it. It happens all the time." He was acting as casually as possible and Dek had to admit, it was a far better act than that morning's fiasco. However, it wasn't going to fool him and obviously wasn't fooling the small mammal he could swear was on the verge of a seizure on his head.

"Boss," he started before Mame could go into panic mode. "It's usually _me _who has to tell _you _that there's trouble. I've never seen you take initiative."

"Yeah? Well, I thought it'd be good to give stupid punks like these a real reason not to try and take what's mine. Send a message, y'know?" He'd only thought of that in that very instant but Staz had to admit: it was a pretty good lie. The concerned and confused look on Dek's face was seriously getting under his skin and Mame in his panicked state would equal the annoyance factor of a thousand screaming children. So he said the first things that came to mind and for once in his life they were something intelligent.

Dek frowned a bit before gaining a thoughtful expression and finally a mumbled, "Yeah, I guess...". He didn't seem too convinced but at the very least he was satisfied with the answer. Staz's Cheshire grin briefly morphed into a real smile before a certain furry friend of his butted in.

"B-but you... That's not... not possible! You'd never do anything that'd require _effort!_" Mame had a paw pointed accusingly at him and he gave the slightest twitch of his eye before frowning completely. Why couldn't he just shut up for once in his life? Why?

The crowd, sensing their boss's aggravation and growing need for some privacy, slowly dispersed, as if going too fast would get them in his crosshairs. As soon as they were all gone Staz let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He wanted to bash his head against the nearest brick wall. While he greatly appreciated Dek and Mame's trust and loyalty he sometimes regretted it. This was definitely one of those times. "Alright, you guys wanna know the real reason?" They nodded. Staz suddenly felt as though the words he wanted to say might choke him before he even had the chance to utter the first syllable. "I..." He stopped dead and they stood waiting. Shit, he couldn't tell them. He couldn't even remotely hope to. It was just way too personal. They didn't even know he had a brother, let alone that it was frickin' Braz, of all people. They knew his last name but had never really made the connection. He sometimes didn't know whether he should feel thankful for that or be absolutely disappointed about their intellect. Seriously, it wasn't _that _hard to figure out.

"Um, Earth to Staz? You still there?"

"Hm?" He turned to look at Mame. The small creature looked worried again and Dek wasn't too far off either. It was really getting annoying now. He sucked in a breath and suddenly had the biggest brainstorm of his life. "Steel Samurai Sushi Slice!" he screamed while doing an absolutely ridiculous air sword attack. Dek and Mame both started at the sudden outburst.

"What exactly was that, boss?" Dek was so surprised that he almost forgot to add the "boss".

"That was a new move I learned from an awesome fight scene." This was a longshot but if he could play his cards right then he could keep his secret.

"O-ok... So what's that got to do with this?"

"Well obviously, like any other time I do this, I was trying some new attack combos and stuff." He couldn't possibly screw up this lie. He was literally doing stuff like this nearly every other week. And Dek and the others were so used to it that it wouldn't seem any stranger now. When you were around Staz, you just got used to things like that.

"So you were just playing make-believe games instead of actually defending your territory?!" Mame had taken the bait and eaten it whole. It shouldn't be too hard to convince Dek now.

"Hey wait a minute! I do NOT play make-believe! My moves are the ultimate skill!" Staz was far from acting now that Mame had made the mistake of insulting his anime obsession.

"_Skills_ are something crucial to everyday life! Like responsibility or respect or being realistic. Things you _should_ know. They are not goofing around _playing make-believe_."

"I told you! It's not make-believe! It's practice, dammit." Staz crossed his arms and glared childishly at the small demon on his second-in-command's head. The animal returned the gesture.

"In what world would you ever need some ridiculous move like that last one? Attack of the fifty-foot sushi?"

"How do you know? It's totally possible. Things could get mutated or something. By the time I visit Japan it could be overrun with toxic waste or aliens or monsters or something. What if they clone Godzilla?"

Mame was about to respond to that but Dek, having heard enough and now sick of being directly in the middle of it, stopped them both. "Look," he said. "Let's not fight about this anymore. If Staz wants to, er, practice then let him." Mame huffed. "And boss, if you wanna practice your anime moves could you at least pick one less..." Staz shot him a menacing glare, just threatening him to finish that sentence. "Never mind. I'm gonna go grab a couple o' beers. Or thirty." Rubbing his eyes in exasperation he turned and headed back in the direction he came from, to the café, taking Mame with him. As he was being carried away he turned around and stuck his tongue out at the vampire, who did the same.

Now that they were out of sight Staz let out a sigh of relief. That was too close. If he hadn't thought of that move he'd have been screwed. _"Ok. Problem solved,"_ he thought. _"Now I just have the main one to worry about. If only there was a way..." _Unfortunately, he couldn't think of one. Those horrid nightmares have been plaguing him for the longest time now and haven't stopped. He was starting to worry that they never would. That he'd be forever tormented because of his bastard of a brother. Looking back on it, he was never quite certain why he didn't run away sooner. It would've been so much better if he had. Although he always had the nagging feeling that if he had left before Braz had shot that bullet in his heart then he would've hunted him down.

* * *

Braz continued to watch his younger brother as he wracked his brain for something believable to say. Well, he was only half watching by this point. A good part of his thoughts was devoted to his slight guilt over Liz. It wasn't unusual for her to throw tantrums like that; she was still a child after all. But still, tantrums or not he couldn't deny that he did feel like shit for upsetting her all the time. She was the outsider in the family, bearing no resemblance to her brothers both physically and in the sense of her powers. She didn't get to spend nearly as much time with their parents as Staz and he did, and he certainly didn't treat her with the same fondness he had shown his younger brother. He had a pretty good feeling that his neglect towards people who weren't useful to him and his current plans was going to bite him in the ass one day.

"Steel Samurai Sushi Slice!"

Whatever dark thoughts going through Braz's head at that moment were instantly expelled as he stared at the image of his brother doing the absolute. Stupidest. Thing. Ever.

Seriously. He knew Staz had a mildly disturbing fascination with the Japanese and anime but this was just... Jeez this was stupid. Braz actually had to fight just to keep from bursting into a fit of obnoxious giggles. He didn't even want to know what sort of crap his brother got _that _from. Severing the crystal ball's connection to Lower Demon World he took off his glasses and flat out laughed. It was just too funny, even he couldn't help himself. When he finally regained control, the faintest smile still present on his lips, he stood up to head to his lab. A few more quick preparations and he'd be heading to Demon World East, all the while trying not to laugh himself silly with the thought of Staz running into him and pulling that... Crap he couldn't think of anything to call it. It definitely wasn't a move though. Moves took actual skill, something his brother had always lacked. In any case, he'd never get the chance to see him anyway. His time there would be brief, and he was going for one specific thing.

* * *

He could see it now. Just like how he'd always imagined it. He'd be running through a desolate part of a city-probably still the west if he jumped from the same spot-and dive into the nearest shut-up building he could find. Then he'd cram himself into the smallest space he could fit in and try not to breathe too loudly. It would be hours, it could possibly even become nighttime, before Braz would open the door and casually walk closer to his hiding spot. The whole while before he'd been found he was constantly thinking that he should move. Find somewhere better to stay where he'd never get caught. Somewhere far, far away from his older brother. Too late now. Braz would calmly knock on the crate he was hiding in-Staz wasn't sure why he always made his hiding place a crate, but it was probably because he felt you couldn't get any smaller than a crate-and when there was no answer he'd open the lid himself. Then, without the slightest hint of anger in his voice, he'd tell Staz that it was time to go home. And he'd end up going. And then getting shot.

It was always his tone of voice that put him on edge. He never got angry at Staz and even when he tried to get a rise out of him he'd just smile and chuckle before patting him on the head. A form of endearment from Braz's perspective, but a form of severe pissing off from Staz's. He wasn't a frickin' dog. One time he told him that and received a laugh in response. At the time, he took it to mean that his brother believed he was one, but now he knows that it was just him being his usual jerk self and that the claim wasn't even taken seriously.

Putting his hands in his pockets, Staz whistled a tune as he walked the streets of Demon World East. He occasionally passed a few people who nodded and gave him a smile, which he returned. It wasn't genuine but he saw no need for it to be. He couldn't keep track of anyone's names outside of Dek, Mamejirou, Saty and Wolf. There was this one guy who was always with the Boss of the West and getting on everyone's nerves though. What was his name? Johnny, or whatever? Oh well. It didn't concern him anyway.

* * *

**A/N: Finally, an update! I apologize if you don't get the Steel Samurai reference but I seriously couldn't think of any other move to put in. If you want to know about it, you should definitely play the Ace Attorney games, including Investigations because that's awesome too and it's where I got this particular move name from. Just for copyright purposes, I don't own the Steel Samurai, the move, or anything Ace Attorney. Capcom does.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: It's been a long while but I'm back at it. Final chap, yay.**

* * *

Braz calmly strode through Demon World East, making sure to stay out of sight. He was on a mission, and he couldn't afford to get caught up in any trouble from the locals. Not to mention the fact that he could possibly run into Staz. It was obvious that everyone had dispersed from the previous show, so Staz himself was likely roaming around somewhere too. While he wouldn't mind seeing his brother again, Braz knew that if he made contact now it would ruin everything.

He stopped. Speaking of Staz...

The territory boss was walking through the alleys when something suddenly felt off to him. He turned to his left and saw nothing but the empty alley and the street beyond. Nothing was out of the ordinary, but he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was there. And they were watching him. Light chills were running down his spine but he continued on anyways. He didn't see any signs of life and wasn't in the mood for more unnecessary fighting. Besides, he had more important things to worry about.

Braz let out a breath as he watched his younger brother walk away, completely oblivious to him. It was a good thing he could fit in the small space between two buildings. Staz would've flipped otherwise. He started back at his previous pace. Finally, he reached his destination.

"Well, what do we have here?" he said, smiling sinisterly. The raven-haired man in the striped suit turned from the hovering curtain to face him, the blonde streak in front becoming visible. "The king's messenger boy."

"Oh, dear. It seems I've been discovered." The young man chuckled and brushed some of his hair to the side. "I'm sorry, but you're not allowed to see this."

"Oh?" Braz asked, playing along.

"I'm going to have to kill you." He was trying to come off as threatening, but Braz knew he was no match for him.

"How awful," he said, amused. "Well, I invite you to try." Just as the man's eyes widened in excitement, Braz pierced him through the chest with his magic. "I apologize, but I never had the intention of giving you the chance."

The king's servant fell to his knees while coughing up blood. "H-heh... That was just... cruel of you..." he choked, somehow still managing to keep a grin.

"This isn't the half of it, trust me." Braz formed his magic around him, causing the bloodied man to look at him in surprise. He'd never seen such beautiful magic before.

"Who... are you?"

"Your creator," he said before hitting him with a final attack. Now that he was unconscious and barely alive, he could send him to a certain mad scientist for his 'repairs.' But before he left, there was one more thing he wanted to do.

* * *

Staz sighed in boredom before changing directions and heading back to his apartment. There was nothing interesting to do here, so he might as well go play some video games or something. At least he'd finally have his mind off those nightmares for a little while.

"This is some messed up shit," he muttered to himself. "How can this even be happening? I'm not scared of anything, so why should some stupid freaking nightmares get under my skin? I'm Staz C. Blood, the most badass demon in all of Demon World East. No, ALL of the Demon World. Yeah, that's better." He had to admit, this little bout of arrogant ranting was helping him feel better. He almost debated standing on the roof of his building and shouting it for all to hear. Ok, so now it was getting ridiculous, even for him.

Having reached the door of the apartment building he walked in like he owned the place-which he did-and took the elevator to the third floor to get to one of his many store rooms. This one in particular held some of his favorite anime figures and video games. He was thinking about playing some Final Fantasy. Man, that was a good game. How come they only ever made one? The title shouldn't limit how many games they can make.

Once he reached the room he looked around for it. When it didn't turn up, he figured he'd left it somewhere in his bedroom. Now that he thought about it, he _had _been playing it a little while ago. He strode out the room and began making his way to where he spent most of his time. When he entered, the first thing he saw was a folded up piece of paper sitting on the bed. Scratching his head because he couldn't recall leaving it there, he walked over and picked it up. When he unfolded it and saw the handwriting he gasped, dropped it, and shivered. It was his brother's.

"Why's that selfish bastard leaving notes? And more importantly, why is he even comin' in my room?" He glanced around as though Braz would step out and begin harassing him. He didn't, so he sighed and picked the note up. He should at least read it.

_Hello Staz. It's been a while, hasn't it? _

"'Course it was, dammit!" He kept reading.

_I was just in the neighborhood and wanted to visit, but you weren't home and I didn't really have the time. So, I left this._

"Is there even any point to this thing?!" Staz skipped over most of the note; it was about Braz and Liz and life in Acropolis. Crap.

_I hope we'll see each other soon. _

_Signed, _

_Braz D. Blood, your loving brother. _That was end of the note and what pissed Staz off the most. So many obscenities were flying through his mind right now. Who did Braz think he was? First, he trespasses in his turf. Then, he breaks into his apartment-he had to because the door was locked. And now, he's leaving freakin' notes.

Staz grunted and, focusing his magic, burned it in the palm of his hand. He didn't need this, especially not now. Exhaling sharply through his nose he grabbed the PlayStation controller, turned on the system and TV, and plopped on the bed to play. He didn't remember what game he had in there but it didn't matter. He'd play anything right now to get his mind off his brother.

Eventually, he forgot about the whole ordeal and began thinking about his life. His heritage. Here was a descendant of Dracula, sitting around playing a human toy. He vaguely wondered if his ancestor would be angry over the fact that he was basically rejecting his heritage. Well, whatever. He didn't want to be tied down by family reputation. He was himself first and foremost, and if that meant he was nothing more than a lazy, video game-loving otaku vampire, then so be it. It was better than being like the rest of his family, going around in goofy clothes and chasing after human women like some sort of perv. It just wasn't his style.

After dying for the umpteenth time, Staz hurled the controller across the room with a few choice words. He stood and stretched before walking over to the window to watch the people below and to cool off. It was at that moment that his phone rang, and when he answered Dek informed him of a human girl in the city. His heart stopped.

"Bring her here," he said, unable to hide the shiver of excitement in his voice. "That's an order."

* * *

**A/N: I know it was short, but there wasn't much left to elaborate on. Staz's childhood trauma isn't going to go away, but he'll likely forget about it thanks to all the crazy stuff that goes on once he gets involved with Fuyumi. I'm not saying it won't come back, but I think it'll be in the background now that he's got so much other stuff happening. I hope this was a good story, or at the very least ok. I do like Blood Lad, but I don't think I'm as good with the characters as I am with some of those from other series. I tried to keep them from becoming too OOC, but in this chapter they were probably all like that. **


End file.
